Taut airship



A. VON PA'RSEVAL TAUT AIRSHIP Dec. 2 1924. 1,520,618

Filed Feb. 16, 1924 In vent-or:

Patented 23,

hilt? AUGUST vov IFABSEVAL, OF BERLIN-CHARLQTTENBURG, GERMANY.

Application filed February 16, 1924.

To all whom it may comer-n:

Be it known that I, AUoUsT voN Pansnmn, a citizen of Germany, and resident of 6 Niebuhrstrasse, in the city of Berlin-Cl1arlottenburg, Germany, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Taut Airships, of which the following is a specification.

This invention has reference to air-ships of the taut shell type, and it refers in particular to the construction of a species of airships with taut shell in which, similar to the construction of the rigid type of air ships, the gas compartments are disposed in a seperate envelop. In accordance with my invention the gas cells or compartments are so arranged as to present the necessary safety from leakage of gas and resistibility against the substantially axially directed gas pressure which is of particular importance and required in the case of inclined positions of the air-ship, while, on the other hand, the construction is such as to impart to the gas compartments a degree of free movement as to cause the gas to always assume the highest position in the cell or compartment with different proportions of thecharge. In view of these and other important objects in the practice of my invention. the lower substantially vertically movable portion of the cells is connected for the absorption of the longitudinal stressesby long tensional ropes to the outer shell of the ship, such ropes being in substantially parallel relation to the axis of the air ship or balloon, for the purpose of preventing lateral displacement of the lower cell portions upon the raising and lowering of the same. The invention further contemplates a construc tion in which the front sides of the cells or compartments are connected to the cell walls by tensional means disposed in horizontal planes in parallel relation to the axis of the balloon, by which means the longitudinal stresses are transmitted to the line of connection of the cell or compartment with the outer shell or envelop of the air ship. Uther important objects and advantages will appear as the specification proceeds. The invention will be more fully described with reference to the accompanying drawings showing by way of example one form of embodiment of the principles of my invention, Figure 1 being a longitudinal section through the air ship according to my invention. Figure 2 is a transverse section;

Serial No, 693,293.

Figure 3 illustrates in a somewhat conventional manner the front wall of a gas cell in elevation; Figure 4 is a perspective view of portion of a cell, and Figure 5 is a plan view of details shown in Figure 3.

In the drawings :-a is the outer protecting envelop enclosing five compartments or cells I, E, III, IV and V the respective diameters of which are somewhat smaller than the diameter of the outer protecting envelop a, so that between the cells and the protecting envelop a free space is left at b for the gangway. Upon the front portion of the balloon body the operators cabin d is mounted which is in communication with the free space I) by means of an air lock 6 with wing-doors through which entrance into the interior of the space 6 is possible. Upon the rear portion of the balloon body the cabin f with the motor engines is arranged from which entrance may be had to the space 6 by means of a ladder 9 leading to an oval shaped entrance opening which may be provided with an inwardly swinging lid.

The five cells or compartments are securely connected to the outer envelop ca along the line 7 y (Figure l) which is disposed somewhat below the longitudinal axis of the balloon body. In the case of cells which are contiguous to an outer enclosing envelop this method of fastening may be dispensed with. Each of the cells is, moreover, secured to the outer envelop aabove the line g/-y and in accordance with the two lines 3 3 as indicated, for instance, with reference to the cell Ill. The free space .7) is maintained constantly tight by blowers, valves and the like in the known manner, the pressure in the space Z) being transmitted in a. uniform manner to the gas charge in the cells by the arrangement of the movable lower portions of the cell below the lines yy and aa. In this connection it may be stated that it is not necessary for the space with condensed air to entirely surround the cells, it being suflicient to have this space extend from below up to the lines y-g, so that all the cells are situated with their lower portions in a common air space.

During the operation of the ship the consumption of fuel causes considerable loss of gas resulting in an upward movement of the bottoms of the cells, as indicated for instance in Figure 1 with reference to the cells 11 and IV.. In the case of any leakage occurring the several cells show diiferent degrees of gas charge, and accordingly different degrees of pressure.

In the case of the air ship assuming an inclined position the gas charge will be caused to flow in the direction of the-front portion of the balloon which is at a higher level, which may result in the liability of the cell walls to be deflected or bent or even to be burst by the gas pressure. In view thereof and for the purpose of reinforcing the front walls of the cells against the action of pressure acting in one direction only, horizontally and vertically extending reinforcements or stays of fabric are provided at i and 7c in the corners of the cell, which are of substantially triangular shape, and extend up to about the lines 3/. By this means the lower portions of the cell are given the possibility of being vertically sustained and raised without any portions of the supporting members being prematurely relieved from tension or pressure. The triangles, 2' and is may either consist of a closed piece of fabric, as indicated for instance in Figure 5 by crosswise shading, or they may be formed, with a view of the reduction of weight, of parallel ropes or cords which are secured to the cell walls by a strip of fabric or the like Z.

Inasmuch as the outer shell of each cell or compartment is not connected to the outer protecting envelop a below the line g in the case of an inclination of the air-ship the fully charged cell III for instance by reason of its upward pressure would be crowded below one of the less filled adjacent cells II or IV, which would result in serious deformation, and eventually in a rupture of the, cell. In order to avoid this difficulty each cell or compartment is connected on both sides to the protecting envelop a by means of two or more ropes m of substantial length and approximately parallel to the axis of the balloon. Thus, the ropes m are secured at one end to the cells, while with their other ends they are fastened to the inside of the outer protecting envelop or shell a, and by this means the ropes will absorb the longitudinal stresses without interfering with the vertical movability of the.

cells.

VVh-ile I have hereinbefore described one of the possible embodiments of the princlples of' my invention merely. by way of exemplification, it should be understood that it 1s susceptible of modifications and changes to-s'uit the convenience of the user, and to better adapt the invention to the varying requirements of its application, and it will be evident that variations and alterations in the shape and configuration and arrangement of the different parts may occur without deviating from the spirit of my invention, as pointed out in the claims hereunto appended.

I claim 7 1. Taut-shell airship comprising the com bination with a fluid containing balloon, and an outer protecting envelop for said balloon, and a plurality of gas containing cells in the interior thereof, of tensional means connecting the lower portions of said cells to the protecting envelop and substantially extending in parallelism to the axis of the balloon, and adapted to prevent lateral displacement of the lower portions of the cell during the up-and-down movement of the same.

2. Taut-shell air-ship comprising the combination with a fluid containing balloon, and an outer protecting envelop for said balloon, of a plurality of gas containing cells in the interior of said balloon, means to maintain. said cells clear of the inner wall of said envelop, and tensional means substantially in parallelism to the axis of the balloon, connecting the lower portions of the cells to said envelop.

3. Taut-shell air ship, comprising the combination with a fluid containing balloon, of a plurality. of gas containing cells secured to the upper portion of said balloon, and spaced from the lower portion thereof, thereby admitting of a vertical movement of the lower cell portions, lengthwise extending tensional ropes substantially in parallelism to the axis of the balloon.

47. Taut-shell air-ship comprising the combination with a fluid containing balloon, and an outer protecting envelop for said balloon, of a plurality of gas cells in the interior of said balloon, means to connect said cells to the envelop, and tension sup.- porting means in the interior of said cells, substantially in parallelism, to the axis of the balloon, and adapted to transmit the longitudinal stresses to the line of connection of the cells to the protecting envelop.

5. Taut-shell air ship comprising the combination with a fluid containing balloon, and an outer protecting envelop for said balloon, of a plurality of gas cells in the interior thereof, means connecting said cells to the envelop along substantially vertical lines, substantially triangular reinforcing means in the interior of the gas cells substantially parallel to the balloon axis and additional reinforcing means in the gas cells angularly disposed with relation to the other reinforcing means.

6. Taut-shell air ship comprising the combination with a fluid containing balloon, and an outer protecting envelop for said balloon, of a plurality of gas cells in the interior thereof, means connecting said gas cells to the envelop along substantially vertical lines, means to maintain said gas cells clear of a portion of the envelop, flexible supporting and stress absorbing means extending fromv the lower portions of said cells I to the envelop, substantially triangular reinforcing i'neans parallelly spaced from each other in the interior of the gas cells, and substantially parallel to the axis of the balloon, and additional reinforcing means in the gas cells angularly disposed With relation to the other reinforclng means.

iaut-shell air ship comprising the combination with a fluid containing balloon,

and an outer protecting envelop for said 10 balloon, of a plurality of gas cells in the interior thereof, means to maintain said cells in connection with the envelop, and means connecting said gas cells to the envelop, a

plurality of substantially grid shaped reinl5 forcing means in the interior of said cells.

AUGUST v. PARSEVAL. 

